Memory bank

A memory bank was any device intended for holding information over an extended period. While the term implied only computer-based devices, it technically included hard copies, cave drawings, and others. Physical sizes of memory banks ranged from a hand-held data module measuring as little as a half-inch, to massive constructs the size of buildings, with data capacity ranging accordingly.

The memory banks of the alien probeTan Ru were transferred and merged with those remaining in the Earth probe Nomad when the two spacecraft met in deep space. This created a probe with the unintended directive to "seek out and sterilize new life," with Nomad as the body and predominant voice during their co-existence. (TOS: "The Changeling")